“I told him to do none of that. Although that is a great idea.”
“I finished my book,” I let the words linger between us.
“You finished the book.” Jemma smiled at me.
I’d written a book I hadn’t thought was even possible months ago, but here it was, done. And now I’d work on getting it ready for the world. I looked out to the yard one more time, seeing Ryker and Beckett packing things up. Jemma was back at the kitchen table on her phone, and I finally felt at peace.
Peace.
Ryker: Come over.
Itexted Odette, knowing that she’d look at her phone and know exactly what time it was.
In about an hour, I’d be starting my afternoon live stream. Ever since Odette and I had started seeing each other, I’d adjusted my streams to be more in the afternoon to give us more time together at night. Beckett and I had been toying around with permanently moving my time slots, and so far, it was working. While some people who usually watched later in the evening weren’t always able to get on at the start, the stream went well into the early evening, meaning those people could still jump on and watch for a few hours.
As Odette and I had been seeing each other for almost a month now, we’d normally spent our respective afternoons apart, both working. Since she finished writing her book yesterday, I figured today would be a great day for her to come over and relax from her normal writing days.
My phone buzzed, and I looked down to see a side-eye emoji pop up.
Odette: You’re streaming soon, though.
Ryker: I know.
I messaged her and continued with my morning, getting ready for the day. Once I was out of the shower, I had one text from her and knew she’d be here soon.
Odette: Coming!
I laughed and checked that I had provisions set up: water, energy drink, and snacks. I made quick work setting up a little corner for Odette on the side of the room where I could see her, but where I made sure she’d be off camera, just in case.
She’d be able to make it in time for me to set her up before my stream started. I reached for my phone to message Beckett.
Ryker: I’m having Odette watch me today.
Beckett: Is that so?
I rolled my eyes. He was still giving me shit for telling her everything so soon, but he’d admitted the other night that seeing me free to do this and not have to hide it from her made me more focused.
Beckett: Maybe she can give you some pointers.
I threw my phone on the desk and left it. Fuck him.
But maybe he was right.
It wasn’t like I didn’t know how to play the game, but I hadn’t really thought about asking Odette for pointers or tips when it came to the game. It seemed like an unfair advantage.
There was a knock at the front door. I looked over at my monitor clock; I still had twenty minutes before one. I made myway to the door, fully expecting Odette, but opened the door to Beckett.
“I figured after that last message you were going to ignore me.”
“Please leave.” I looked over my shoulder at the clock on the wall, another minute passing. Odette was going to be here soon, and I needed to get my butt in the seat soon afterwards.
“No.”
Beckett pushed past me into the house. While Beckett and I had been friends forever, I was at the point where I was regretting buying the townhome next to him.
“How do I get you out of my house within the next five seconds?”
“I won’t be home tonight.”
